According to a new notice from the Department of Education, schools must now certify that they do not use diversity, equity, or inclusion in any way in order to receive federal funding. The mandate warns that schools have ten days to sign the pledge and return it to the Department of Education.

The current Department of Education standards say they can withhold funding if schools violate the civil rights laws. “Federal financial assistance is a privilege, not a right” acting Education civil rights director Craig Trainor stated. He went on to say that many schools were violating this rule by using “DEI” in their programs to discriminate against certain groups of students.

This notice follows the pressure Trump has placed on both K-12 and higher education institutions to rid their programs and curriculums of “Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion” themes, and to regulate their staff from teaching “woke” concepts to their students. 

States that refuse to comply with the DEI initiatives can expect a retraction of the funding they receive from the government due to the False Claims Act. This is particularly threatening to schools that rely on funding under Title I, which grants funding to schools in underrepresented and underserved areas.

This continues the trend of the Trump Administration targeting the education system for any traces of DEI. In February, the administration released a memo outlining their policy concerning what they consider discrimination against white and Asian American students in the education system. They declared any kind of this discrimination illegal, citing a Supreme Court ruling that outlawed considering race as a factor for college admissions.

There has been no press release from FCPS on this topic, and it may be impacted in the future if it does not change current policies.